BOSTON—As early as April 2012, Boston will welcome its new Boston Hostel. Perhaps the most expensive hostel in the world, the $43 million project has been designed to earn LEED Silver certification. The new hostel’s location at 19 Stuart Street is at the intersection of Boston’s midtown cultural district, theater district, and Chinatown, close to the Boston Public Garden and adjacent to public transportation. Set in the renovated six-story, 60,000-square-foot Dill Building, the Boston Hostel will have 468 beds, a common area for guests, a self-serve kitchen, and another kitchen for group functions. The hostel is expected to attract 46,000 guests annually, 30,000 of whom will visit from outside the United States. They are expected to spend $16 million or more in the Boston area.

The hostel is being developed by the nonprofits Hostelling International USA and Hostelling International New England. The architectural firm handling the project is Boston-based Bergmeyer Associates, Inc. The hostel will replace one that is 100 percent occupied, lacks central air-conditioning, an elevator, and common spaces.